Even with a built-in base of potential customers, doing business as a hotel restaurant isn't always easy. The restaurants face stereotypes of bland, overpriced food. And without separate entrances, it can be tough to entice people who aren't hotel guests.

The epicenter of development in downtown Sacramento is Downtown Plaza, where the Sacramento Kings are building an arena. While that project’s shock waves extend at least a mile, the biggest effects — at least in the short term — will be right next door.

The end of Downtown Plaza's eastern half and the beginning of a new direction for the city core is about a month from getting underway, and viewing areas will allow interested parties to watch the progress of new arena construction in real time.